Rating: 
Summary: nothing new from Down Under
Review:
If the term itself were not geographically and semantically meaningless, one might well refer to "Ned Kelly" as an "Australian Western." For the people Down Under, Ned Kelly was, apparently, a folk hero bandit akin to Robin Hood, Jesse James, Bonnie and Clyde, and Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid. The descendant of Irish immigrants, Kelly became a fugitive and an outlaw after he was falsely accused of shooting an Australian law officer, a crime for which his equally innocent mother was put into prison. To get back at the government for this mistreatment, Kelly, his brother Dan, and two other companions, became notorious bank robbers, winning over the hearts of many people in the countryside while striking a blow for justice in a land where Irish immigrants were often treated with disrespect and disdain by those who ran the country.
Perhaps because we've encountered this "gentleman bandit" scenario so many times in the past, "Ned Kelly" feels awfully familiar and unoriginal as it pays homage to any number of the genre's stereotypes and cliches on its way to the inevitable showdown. Ned is the typical heart-of-gold lawbreaker who kills only when he is forced to and, even then, only with the deepest regret. He also has the pulse of the common folk, as when, in the middle of a bank robbery, he returns a valuable watch to one of the customers, after one of his gang has so inconsiderately pilfered it. What movie on this particular subject hasn't featured a scene like that? It`s acts of selective generosity like this, of course, that earn him the love and respect of all the little people who come to secretly admire anyone who can get away with sticking it to the powers-that-be and the status quo. Geoffrey Rush plays the typical bedeviled law enforcer who feels a personal stake in bringing down this upstart troublemaker who keeps getting away with tweaking the establishment. There's even the inevitable episode in which one of the ladies being held up goes into the next room and has sex with one of the robbers, so turned on is she by the romantic derring-do of the criminal lifestyle. And the film is riddled with one hackneyed scene like this after another.
Heath Ledger fails to distinguish himself in the title role, providing little in the way of substance to make his character either interesting or engaging. It doesn't help that he has been forced to provide a droning voiceover narration that underlines the sanctimoniousness and pretentiousness of both the character and the film.
"Ned Kelly" might serve a function of sorts as a lesson in Australian history, but as an entertainment, it's just the same old story told with different accents.
Rating: 
Summary: A beautiful, quiet movie
Review: Actually, I've ordered this DVD (through amazon.co.uk, months ago) mainly because an Australian friend recommended it. I didn't know that Heath Ledger, Orlando Bloom, Naomi Watts and Geoffrey Rush starred in it, and at that time, I didn't care. It wasn't the actors I was interested in, it was the content. - Still, I must say that not all of these famous actors/actress lived up to their expectations. - Naomi Watts is rather poor in her performance, but then again it might not be her (lack of) ability (after all she's been nominated for an Academy Award this year), it might be the role itself that makes her performance less than memorable. Much the same goes for Academy Award winner Geoffrey Rush. He's done much better work in other movies, but his role, though vital, is not very impressive, anyway. Heath Ledger is sometimes overacting. But that's his style. Orlando Bloom was portraying quite fairly his character, the handsome, quiet young Joe. He's also the only one who really (even physically) "belongs" in the story of a century gone by. Then again, who am I to criticise? I'm not an actress, what do I know of that "métier", anyway?I'm certainly not going to give you another summary of "Ned Kelly". If you want to know what the movie's story-content is about, you might read the synopsis of the "Editorial Review". Even though the hero's (or heroes' ) story is rather romanticised (as it often is in movies, but that's what legends are mainly based on, "romanticised pictures and ideals", right?), it's still a valid depiction of what contrarieties the Irish (and for that matter, the Scottish, too) had to endure during over 800 years of British supremacy. It shows how one nation thinks it can rule over others, just because they're of this "special" nation and the others aren't. (Still quite an ongoing theme in modern history.) I've called it a quiet movie in the title, even if it's filled with shooting, dying, burning things down, etc. (That's only part of the story and comes with the territory of a gang of outlaws being hunted by everyone who wants to.) The quiet part is the thoughts it might inspire. Showing how one little "misunderstanding" can cause such injustice that a real drama ensues. A whole life is destroyed and with it the family's and friends' lives, too. It shows that even the best intentions can be twisted around if you're on the "losing", wrong side (i.e. the Irish, or let's say "the not British", in the movie). It shows that no matter how hard you try, you can't live in peace with your neighbour if your neighbour refuses to live in peace with you as well. And it shows that deceit might come from the most unlikely, unexpected place (i.e. Aaron). Another quiet part play the beautiful scenery shots. They're breath-taking and sometimes remind you of a documentary on flora and fauna. And so, this quiet, little movie might be the occasion to ask oneself : Is there glory in being hanged? (as Ned Kelly was), Or in being shot? (as Joe Byrne was), Or even in committing suicide? (as Dan Kelly and Steve Hart did). Certainly NOT! But there might be glory in fighting for what you believe in. The might be glory in standing up for your beliefs. Don't just accept injustice. No one has the right to put you down, not even if you're "only" Ned Kelly, an Irish immigrant's (deportee's) son. He's the one who stepped up to the British Empire of the 19th century. And ultimately paid for it with his life. But that's how a legend began....
Rating: 
Summary: Injustice Mushrooms
Review: Gregor Jordan's version of "Ned Kelly" may not be quite as playful as the 1970 Mick Jagger version, but it is a well-done recounting of this Australian legend. Jordan packs the cast with Australian actors who deliver. Australian Heath Ledger delivers a controlled performance that shows great force. Ned Kelly shows a different side of Ledger than we've seen in "10 Things I Hate About You," "A Knight's Tale" or "Monster's Ball." It may come closest to the tightly wound performance he offered in "The Order." Ledger also starred in Gregor Jordan's first film in 1999, "Two Hands," which I have yet to see; so this is their second teaming.
Orlando Bloom does a great job as Kelly's good friend and sidekick. Quite different than "Pirates of the Caribbean," we get to see a Bloom who is a Romeo, constantly hitting on girls with a twinkle in his eye. Most hilarious is his scene with Australian Brenda Griffiths as the bank president's wife where he seduces her a floor above where her spectacled husband sits under gun. Griffiths' Oscar nomination in 1998 for "Hillary & Jackie" and her starring role on HBO's series "6 Feet Under" have made her face familiar; and she has great fun here with Orlando.
Naomi Watts who was born in Great Britain but raised in Australia doesn't have a demanding role as the wife of the horse owner. She seduces Ned Kelly in the stable. For her, this is no "21 Grams," "Mullholland Drive" or "The Ring," but she does what is required in admirable fashion.
The supporting actors also do nice jobs. Laurence Kinlan as brother Dan Kelly has only one other acting credit, "Intermission" with Colin Farrell. Philip Baratini who plays the other gang member Steve Hart does a good job, and is a newcomer. Australian Oscar winning actor Geoffrey Rush (Shine) does a nice job with some emotional levels as the British soldier who chases the Kelly gang. Particularly touching is when he asks for Kelly's sash at the end of the film. Kerry Condon as Ned's sister Kate does a good job of living it up in the pub & then putting off the British soldier who is pursuing her. It will be interesting to see her star in 2005 with Jet Li, Morgan Freeman & Bob Hoskins in "Unleashed." Kiri Paramore as the policeman Fitzpatrick who has an eye for Kate does an appropriately repulsive job of hitting on Ned's sister.
The pacing of the film is excellent; there are no dead spots. We see the action of the film mushroom as the injustice of British rule as applied to the Irish in Australia is made. The cinematography is excellent; and the battle scene is well photographed. The DVD bonus features are interesting. Ledger does bear a resemblance to the original Ned Kelly. It was interesting to see clips from the early Ned Kelly films and from Mick Jagger's 1970 effort. This is a good film, ably acted & directed. Enjoy!
Rating:
Summary: Ned Kelly The Outlaw, Ned Kelly The Romantic....Ned Kelly
Review: Heathe Ledger (The Order, the upcoming Lords Of Dogtown) plays Ned Kelly, a wanted outlaw and a family man and Orlando Bloom (Troy, Black Hawn Down) plays his sidekick Joe Byrne. Kelly, Byrne and friends set out to rob banks and try not to get killed in the process. Some very good action sequences, including the final shootdown at night in the pouring rain. Must of been difficult for Ledger and Bloom to be wearing those armor suits. Also starring Naomi Watts, Rachel Griffiths and a wasted Geoffrey Rush. I think Rush is wasted because he didnt do that much. Watts didnt have a big part as well. Bloom had all the best moments in this movie, especially when he died trying to get a drink, he said, "jesus christ guys, I need a drink" or something like that. All in all it was a good time, with the minor flaws of course being Ledger's non-stop voice overlapping which gave me a headache. Original has Mick Jagger in it, so I recommend if you having seen this movie check it out and if you dont you dont I dont care.
Rating: 
Summary: Better than Robin Hood - but with an accent
Review: I actually rented the DVD of this, and it definitely wasn't an illegal copy, so where the hell is it on Amazon, and no doubt they won't put up a theatrical release review of mine. I saw this movie purely for Heath Ledger and Heath Ledger alone. I couldn't give a stuff about Orlando Bloom, he's too much of a pretty boy. Heath is more rough and ready, just the way I like them. I'd never heard of Ned Kelly before. But never the less I enjoyed the movie, although I'm glad I rented it, and not bought it - it's not a film I would watch again. It's a very sad and predictable story. Ned is an outlaw, what else would happen to outlaws, and their partners-in-crime? What is shocking, that despite 32,000 names on a petition, Ned Kelly was still hanged, at the hopelessly young age of 25. For what? Robbing a few banks? Killing a few police men? There's not much to the story that isn't predictable, and that you won't have already guessed. If you're wanting an Orlando Bloom movie, you'll be sadly disappointed. He has very little screen time (thank God), and instead we get the gorgeous Heath taking up the screen, along with his now ex (she'll take him back, she has done before) Naomi Watts. The only queries I have is the Irish accents when you're in Australia. I was in fits at it, until the director thought it would be best for Heath to explain he was Irish and living in Australia. Yet Ned Kelly comes out and says that he was born in Australia? And I assume a couple of years pass at one point. He goes into jail with a full head of hair, comes out with no hair, and the next scene he has a full head of hair again!!! It's a great film, moving, but looks more like Far & Away most of the time (with the setting). Very predictable - apart from the iron/steel/whatever outfits. Did no one think to cover their arms or legs?!
Rating:
Summary: Orlando Bloom WOW!
Review: I first heard of Ned Kelly on one of the many Ted Egan tapes that my father purchased as my family was driving around Oz when I was 12. "Such as life Ned Kelly, Such as life." When my boyfriend and I went back last year we went and saw the film (twice) upon it's release in Adelhaide. We went on to Glenrowen and I was very pleased with how closely the movie and the song had followed Ted's Life (although as Hollywood is wont to add some things, there is no mention in the history of the love affair with the boss' wife) We also visited the Melbourne Gaol where Ned was held and saw his death mask. I was disapointed that the movie did not premier on the big screen in North America, we know so much about folk hero's from the United States that this was a welcome change. I recommend Ned Kelly as a wonderful glimpse of Austriala's history. For more movies about Australia check out Rabbit Proof Fence.
Rating:
Summary: The Siege of Glenrowan and the last stand of Ned Kelly
Review: I learned from "Breaker Morant" and "Gallipoli" that the British had little regard for Australian soldiers so it was not surprising to learn from this 2003 version of the "Ned Kelly" story that the British Down Under treated the locals with similar disdain. When it turns out that the title character is also of Irish decent, well, that is just pouring it on when you cross reference all of the films in which the British make the Irish suffer. It is easy enough to explain to the casual viewer that Ned Kelly is the Australian equivalent of Jesse James, but that misses the point that Kelly was a much more popular figure in his land that James was (as witnessed at the 2000 Olympics in Sydney where dancers wearing Kelly's iron helmet with the slit, inspired by Sidney Nolan's Ned Kelly paintings) and that his ending was much more fascinating than that of the American outlaw.
The story of Ned Kelly as told in Gregor Jordan's film is fairly straightforward. Young Ned (Heath Ledger) is sent to prison for a crime that he did not commit, condemned by his ethnicity more than any facts, and when he emerges from prison the authorities continue to go after his family. Since he is being treated like an outlaw he decides to become one along with his brother, Dan (Laurence Kinlan), his best friend, Joe Byrne (Orlando Bloom), and another friend, Steve Hart (Phil Barantini). Superintendent Francis Hare (Geoffrey Rush) leads the police in the great effort to hunt Ned and the boys down, but the Kelly Gang is popular with the people and are able to ride free for a while.
Telling the dramatic story of Kelly's life is hampered by the fact that before his famous last stand at Glenrowan the most notable part of his criminal career was the Jerilderie Letter, a demand for justice written in Ned's own hand that detailed the way he and his family and friends had been treated by the authorities. This is reduced in the film to a chance to call public officials wombats and the like. Fortunately the Siege at Glenrown, which constitutes the final act of the film, is more accurate and more compelling, and provides the best reason for checking out this otherwise rather slow moving film.
With so many people gunning for him Kelly came up with the idea of fashioning bullet-proof armor that could protect them during their bank robberies. The gang also came up with a plan to stop a special train at Glenrowan, the area of their staunchest support, but Hare found out about the plan and was able to turn Glenrowan into a trap for Ned and his boys, as well as their supporters. The battle turned into a siege, with the armor of the Kelly Gang giving them a way of negating the number of armed police that were taking shots at them.
The depiction of what happened at Glenrowan is reasonably accurate and is dramatic enough that I can understand why the film does not go on to show either Kelly's trial or execution. Besides, Jordan has a final ironic touch that he can play with regards to a bloody sash. The armor worn by the Kelly Gang at Glenrowan is on display at various places around Australia and one of the nice touches of the film is how it shows it providing protection, for the most part, but hampering the efforts of the boys to actually aim and shoot their own guns with any degree of accuracy. The armor weighed almost 100 pounds and while it could indeed stoop a Martini-Henry bullet at ten paces there were the practical problems of having extra horses to carry it around, the time it took to put it on, and the ways in changed everything from walking to shooting.
I underscore the historical accuracy of the Kelly Gang armor because those not well versed in Australian folk history, which is pretty much your entire American audience, might think that this is far fetched. But you can imagine how the idea of such armor would appeal to four men being hounded by an army of police, so that becoming the "iron outlaws" seemed as good a tactic as any to try and change things to give them more of a fighting chance. The story outweighs the acting and everyone from Ledger and Rush to the supporting cast give the appearance of playing parts in a pageant, which, from the Australian perspective, would most decidedly seem to be the case. I dare say that female fans of Ledger and Bloom, in particular, are going to be rather surprised by the history lesson they receive here.
Rating:
Summary: Not great, but not horrible either
Review: I was a little disappointed with this film, but I don't think it can really be blamed on the actors. I love watching movies based on real life people though I know movie makers often take enormous liberties when it comes to what version of the "truth" they want to portray on the screen. This movie didn't seem all that interested in telling the story of the Kelly gang. It seemed more interested in showing us just another western. You never get a really good picture of any of the characters so it's hard to feel really attached to anyone. When the predictable end comes, it's hard to make yourself care.
The redeeming qualities for me were the following: First, they do not portray Ned Kelly as a hero or as being perfect. He is shown with his flaws and because of that, we can relate to him better as a human being who has simply been put into horrible circumstances. Second, Geoffrey Rush is a fabulous actor. He makes the best of the poorly written part of Francis Hare, the man sent to track down the Kelly gang. Third, Orlando Bloom. I'm not a big Orlando Bloom fan, but he is the only one who manages to sparkle in this bland film. His character is funny, frisky (to say the least), and probably more human than all the other characters combined. He, like Rush, definitely makes the best of a poorly written/directed script...and in the end, his character is probably the only one you will really remember.
Rating:
Summary: A Beautiful Tragic Drama
Review: I watched this film because of the actors on the billing, not knowing what to expect, and came away deeply touched and with a new respect for Heath ledger. This is a very touching movie, a gritty look at the lives of the Ned Kelly Gang, a group of four friends pushed to become outlaws due to the injustices their family suffers in colonial Austrailia. It is a beautiful and tragic story. The actors have done a surpurb job, portraying not brash larger-then-life characters, but realistic people who have suffered and yet have to go on, tragic heros whom you have to feel for by the end of the film. Ledger gives a confident and mature preformance, unlike any other part he has done before. It isn't a role in which I would have expected to see him, but he definately suceeds and shows his versitality as a serious actor. The Irish culture portayed against the Austrailian landscape gives the movie a surreal quality, and a look at a historical era not usually thought of. This is a breautiful dramatic peice you'll not want to miss. Very well worth it in my opinion.
Rating:
Summary: An interesting story and a great drama
Review: I went to see this movie because I'm a fan of several actors in this motion picture and I found a really good film.
The story begins with Ned Kelly and the problems that lead him to jail in the Australia of the beginnings of the 19th century and it shows not only the injustice of the criminal law of those times and the friendship that lives with in the Kelly family but the English, the Irish and the Chinese inmigrants that are finding a way of living in this land during the development of a new nation that is creating it's own identity.
This movie is kind of a Robin Hood that lives in Australia, with a twist of comedy that just makes it a stronger drama, is an really good chronicle with the kind of ending that marks a good historical narration, also it has beautiful landscapes of the Australian soil, I truly liked it :).
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